CDNow, Outpost (computers and software), Home Depot, Reel.com (videos) or Garden.com, they and hundreds of like-minded competitors think specialists understand their customers better and can provide superior service and lower prices than a generalist such as Amazon.

ECONOMIST: Electronic commerce

Here are some more companies in the Ranger doghouse: Carmax, Ebay, Home Depot, Nike, Priceline, Red Hat Software and Sandisk.

FORBES: The Case Against Fossil, First Solar And Salesforce.com